From our base in Playa Flamingo we headed south down the coast checking out each of the small towns along the way. Unlike home there is no one coastal road that connects each town. Much of the time driving is spent weaving in and out gravel roads peppered with crator like pot holes big enough to swallow you in a moment of lost concentration. Driving in general could actually be considered a high intensity exercise in Costa Rica considering the amount of brain power required to survive each journey. Between the poorly maintained roads, suicidal animals and local drivers with a complete disregard for rules or safety, you compete in a mental triathlon every time you turn the key.
As we explored more and more of the coast, we discovered a few things. It seemed each town was almost a clone of the last. The same tired old hotels, near empty restaurants and tour operators offering the same over-priced rafting and zip-line activities. To be completely honest, I found this whole area of Costa Rica to be on the depressing side. Much of the tourism here is fueled by American travelers looking for a quick exotic adventure from home. It's also not too uncommon for them to never leave or buy up what used to be a cheap holiday house. Over the years, the cost of living in Costa Rica has steadily risen to where it is now often referred to as Costa Lotta. Given we are now in the low season on the back of a struggling American economy, these small tourism towns are obviously feeling the pinch. One thing did seem quite evident to me and that is that innovation is all but dead in Costa Rica. At some point people just stopped trying to be creative and differentiate their business from the drones of businesses just like them.
We returned to our hotel to find a Scott, a solo Australian traveler we met back at our hostel in Alujuela. At 39, Scott's a fitness fanatic and works hard to keep in top shape. Frankly he makes Charlie and I look bad and you certainly won't catch me standing next to him with my shirt off any time soon. Scott had done all the tours Costa Rica's brochures had to offer and jumped at the chance to split the bill on the hire car and get off the tourist track for a while.
Although Charlie and I usually have a few quiet beers each evening, we managed to so far avoid the party scene. With the arrival of Scott, we now had a good enough excuse to celebrate and get amongst it for a night before we split from resort world.
We ask around and soon discover that for a party, there is only one place to go, Tamarindo.
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